Hello, you may have seen me around on PS, my name on there is AntiMetapod. You'll usually see me talking about how amazing Metapod is. This is only my second RMT here on Smogon, my first was around 2 years ago, and that was a sun team (I hate myself). So it's been awhile. This team is a stall-oriented team, which is what I like playing the most. I am just getting back into this game with the announcement of X & Y, and am really excited to see what new Pokemon will be brought with it. I played most of my matches during DPP, but did play a bit after BW1. I am getting familiar with the meta again as there are many new threats now in use. Back when I played last, Tyranitar was on nearly every team, and Garchomp and Lati@s were in the Uber tier. Now Politoed is on nearly every team and a plethora of new Rain abusers are roaming about. Enough of my rambling, here is the team:
Blissey @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
- Softboiled
- Stealth Rock
~The best special wall in the game, the main role of Blissey here is to set set up stealth rocks reliably, but she also supports the team by walling nearly every special attacker in the game. The EVs and nature are to maximize bulk. Blissey has been a fairly valuable member of this team. Added toxic because I got destroyed by a Volcarona that used Roost and I hadn't gotten my Toxic Spikes up yet. Took out Aromatherapy (:'c).~
Kyurem @ Leftovers
Trait: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 52 HP / 220 SAtk / 236 Spd
Modest Nature
- Substitute
- Roost
- Ice Beam
- Earth Power
~This Kyurem set is amazing. Once certain Pokemon are removed from the game, this guy comes in and sets up on many walls, especially bulky waters who struggle to break Kyurems 101 HP substitutes (Politoed, Tentacruel, etc.). The set, when combined with entry hazards is simply amazing. When The opponents Ferrothorn or Forretress have gyro ball, I simply stall it out using substitutes and roost then proceed to sweep. Ice beam and earth power provide solid coverage.~
Latias @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Recover
- Substitute
- Psyshock
~I cannot quite decide on what to put here. So far Latias has been a phazer and my second late game cleaner, but I am unsure if she is the best fit here. Mostly, I needed a way to stop fighting types from ruining my day, hence psychic. I also noticed that apart from Tentacruel, Sun teams were bound to hurt me a lot, Latias helps with that as well. Thinking about placing the more offensive Latios here. Changed Psychic to Psyshock because fighting types typically have lower defense stats and it also allows me to set up along side and beat some other Calm Minders. Also changed Roar to substitute to avoid status as I lost my Aromatherapy (again, :'c)~
Tentacruel @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spd
Bold Nature
- Rain Dance
- Rapid Spin
- Scald
- Toxic Spikes
~Tentacruel is very very important on this team. He sets up the toxic spikes for Kyurem and the others and also rapid spins away hazards that hurt my team. He is also the bulky water that you see on most teams. Took out Knock Off and changed to Rain Dish but added Rain Dance to troll teams that use weather.~
Skarmory @ Shed Shell
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Def / 24 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
~Ahh Skarmory. He is the second half to Blissey creating the ever annoying SkarmBliss defensive core. Not much to be said here except that he lays down spikes, whisks away physical sweepers, and occasionally nabs a couple KOs himself. Really strong member of this team.~
Scizor @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bug Bite
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
~I noticed that the team lacked a revenge killer, and a reliable stat-boosting sweeper. This guy covers both of those roles really well. Him along with Latias are important for me to keep around for late game as they both check things that could destroy the rest of my team. Pursuit is used to trap spinners, namely Starmie. Made bulkier and improved power.~
Threat List
Volcarona, if set up, can do some pretty substantial damage to this team, especially if it carries HP Ground. If sun sweepers are allowed to set up, that can also spell doom for this team. Dragonites that carry fire punch and get a dragon dance up with multiscale active can be tough for my team to take down. Often times it involves sacrificing my Skarmory to phaze. Fast fighting types, such as Terrakion and Infernape can also be hard to handle. Infernape can deal a lot of damage with sun boosted flare blitzes. Terrakion does die to Scizor. That being said, I don't think this team has actually lost to a sun team, but I also don't think those teams were all that great :p. Tentacruel can be a problem for this team as well. It absorbs Toxic spikes and spins away my other entry hazards. Latias can typically deal with Tentacruel by using psychic, but that isn't guaranteed. Standard mixed Hydregion can also pose a problem to this team if its moves aren't properly predicted.
This team hasn't necessarily "peaked" at any specific number, all I can say is that I have lost few games at around 1650 rank in OU. Any changes you could suggest would be greatly appreciated.
*I would really like to steer clear of weather, I dislike playing against it and am trying to establish a great team without having to rely on weather support ESPECIALLY from Politoed. I do recognize, however, that a good way to counter weather is with different weather.
Thanks.
At a Glance
Team Building
My first choice to start my OU team was Metapod. He uses Harden to boost his already amazing base 55 defense to insane levels. In fact, after just one Harden, his defense skyrockets to a whopping 343 not including the boost from Eviolite, wow! Coupled with an amazing 304 HP, there's no way even sun-boosted choice band Victini can V-Create through this. Well I tried that, and it didn't work out so well. After all, with a shallow movepool of only 7 moves in all, there's not much Metapod can do. If this were to work, I'd definitely run Harden, String Shot, Tackle, and maybe Bug Bite.
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I noticed that Kyurem-B had insane stats. He boasts the highest unboosted outrage in the game with his whopping base 170 attack stat. Then I also noticed his subpar movepool and lower special attack stat than Kyurem. I decided that I would instead use Kyurem in its normal form. The set worked out fantastically.
Next, I found that Kyurem can get a lot of kills with support from entry hazards, but was also weak to stealth rock. Kyurem also appreciated poison to harm the opponent when stalling, so I added Tentacruel and Skarmory to the group.
I still needed stealth rock as an entry but I also needed something that would play nice with Skarmory, so I added Blissey.
The team was pretty weak to fighting type attacks and certain fire types especially on sun teams, so I needed something that could wall them both. I thought of Latias.
By now I saw that I had no revenge killer. A choice scarf didn't seem to fit on this style of team, so I wanted some powerful priority. I also wanted something that could set up on stall teams and wreak havoc. Scizor fit the bill.
A Closer Look
Team Building
My first choice to start my OU team was Metapod. He uses Harden to boost his already amazing base 55 defense to insane levels. In fact, after just one Harden, his defense skyrockets to a whopping 343 not including the boost from Eviolite, wow! Coupled with an amazing 304 HP, there's no way even sun-boosted choice band Victini can V-Create through this. Well I tried that, and it didn't work out so well. After all, with a shallow movepool of only 7 moves in all, there's not much Metapod can do. If this were to work, I'd definitely run Harden, String Shot, Tackle, and maybe Bug Bite.
====================================================================================================================================================
I noticed that Kyurem-B had insane stats. He boasts the highest unboosted outrage in the game with his whopping base 170 attack stat. Then I also noticed his subpar movepool and lower special attack stat than Kyurem. I decided that I would instead use Kyurem in its normal form. The set worked out fantastically.
Next, I found that Kyurem can get a lot of kills with support from entry hazards, but was also weak to stealth rock. Kyurem also appreciated poison to harm the opponent when stalling, so I added Tentacruel and Skarmory to the group.
I still needed stealth rock as an entry but I also needed something that would play nice with Skarmory, so I added Blissey.
The team was pretty weak to fighting type attacks and certain fire types especially on sun teams, so I needed something that could wall them both. I thought of Latias.
By now I saw that I had no revenge killer. A choice scarf didn't seem to fit on this style of team, so I wanted some powerful priority. I also wanted something that could set up on stall teams and wreak havoc. Scizor fit the bill.
A Closer Look
Blissey @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
- Softboiled
- Stealth Rock
~The best special wall in the game, the main role of Blissey here is to set set up stealth rocks reliably, but she also supports the team by walling nearly every special attacker in the game. The EVs and nature are to maximize bulk. Blissey has been a fairly valuable member of this team. Added toxic because I got destroyed by a Volcarona that used Roost and I hadn't gotten my Toxic Spikes up yet. Took out Aromatherapy (:'c).~
Kyurem @ Leftovers
Trait: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 52 HP / 220 SAtk / 236 Spd
Modest Nature
- Substitute
- Roost
- Ice Beam
- Earth Power
~This Kyurem set is amazing. Once certain Pokemon are removed from the game, this guy comes in and sets up on many walls, especially bulky waters who struggle to break Kyurems 101 HP substitutes (Politoed, Tentacruel, etc.). The set, when combined with entry hazards is simply amazing. When The opponents Ferrothorn or Forretress have gyro ball, I simply stall it out using substitutes and roost then proceed to sweep. Ice beam and earth power provide solid coverage.~
Latias @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Recover
- Substitute
- Psyshock
~I cannot quite decide on what to put here. So far Latias has been a phazer and my second late game cleaner, but I am unsure if she is the best fit here. Mostly, I needed a way to stop fighting types from ruining my day, hence psychic. I also noticed that apart from Tentacruel, Sun teams were bound to hurt me a lot, Latias helps with that as well. Thinking about placing the more offensive Latios here. Changed Psychic to Psyshock because fighting types typically have lower defense stats and it also allows me to set up along side and beat some other Calm Minders. Also changed Roar to substitute to avoid status as I lost my Aromatherapy (again, :'c)~
Tentacruel @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spd
Bold Nature
- Rain Dance
- Rapid Spin
- Scald
- Toxic Spikes
~Tentacruel is very very important on this team. He sets up the toxic spikes for Kyurem and the others and also rapid spins away hazards that hurt my team. He is also the bulky water that you see on most teams. Took out Knock Off and changed to Rain Dish but added Rain Dance to troll teams that use weather.~
Skarmory @ Shed Shell
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Def / 24 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
~Ahh Skarmory. He is the second half to Blissey creating the ever annoying SkarmBliss defensive core. Not much to be said here except that he lays down spikes, whisks away physical sweepers, and occasionally nabs a couple KOs himself. Really strong member of this team.~
Scizor @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bug Bite
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
~I noticed that the team lacked a revenge killer, and a reliable stat-boosting sweeper. This guy covers both of those roles really well. Him along with Latias are important for me to keep around for late game as they both check things that could destroy the rest of my team. Pursuit is used to trap spinners, namely Starmie. Made bulkier and improved power.~
Threat List
Volcarona, if set up, can do some pretty substantial damage to this team, especially if it carries HP Ground. If sun sweepers are allowed to set up, that can also spell doom for this team. Dragonites that carry fire punch and get a dragon dance up with multiscale active can be tough for my team to take down. Often times it involves sacrificing my Skarmory to phaze. Fast fighting types, such as Terrakion and Infernape can also be hard to handle. Infernape can deal a lot of damage with sun boosted flare blitzes. Terrakion does die to Scizor. That being said, I don't think this team has actually lost to a sun team, but I also don't think those teams were all that great :p. Tentacruel can be a problem for this team as well. It absorbs Toxic spikes and spins away my other entry hazards. Latias can typically deal with Tentacruel by using psychic, but that isn't guaranteed. Standard mixed Hydregion can also pose a problem to this team if its moves aren't properly predicted.
This team hasn't necessarily "peaked" at any specific number, all I can say is that I have lost few games at around 1650 rank in OU. Any changes you could suggest would be greatly appreciated.
*I would really like to steer clear of weather, I dislike playing against it and am trying to establish a great team without having to rely on weather support ESPECIALLY from Politoed. I do recognize, however, that a good way to counter weather is with different weather.
Thanks.
Blissey (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Natural Cure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
- Softboiled
- Stealth Rock
Kyurem @ Leftovers
Trait: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 52 HP / 220 SAtk / 236 Spd
Modest Nature
- Substitute
- Roost
- Ice Beam
- Earth Power
Latias (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Recover
- Substitute
- Psyshock
Tentacruel (M) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spd
Bold Nature
- Rain Dance
- Rapid Spin
- Scald
- Toxic Spikes
Skarmory (M) @ Shed Shell
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Def / 24 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
Scizor (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bug Bite
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit
Trait: Natural Cure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SDef
Calm Nature
- Toxic
- Seismic Toss
- Softboiled
- Stealth Rock
Kyurem @ Leftovers
Trait: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 52 HP / 220 SAtk / 236 Spd
Modest Nature
- Substitute
- Roost
- Ice Beam
- Earth Power
Latias (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Recover
- Substitute
- Psyshock
Tentacruel (M) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spd
Bold Nature
- Rain Dance
- Rapid Spin
- Scald
- Toxic Spikes
Skarmory (M) @ Shed Shell
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Def / 24 Spd
Impish Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Spikes
- Whirlwind
Scizor (M) @ Life Orb
Trait: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bug Bite
- Bullet Punch
- Pursuit